LAUSR

To the Editor Over the course of our training from medical school to residency to fellowship, we have followed the developing field of physician wellness with great interest. We have observed that wellness-related assessments may pose important ethical questions, yet the framework for addressing these questions may be inconsistently applied. Consider the following scenario: An institutional leader decides to survey colleagues and trainees about their personal well-being and about the perceived impacts of this well-being on their professional satisfaction. Since this survey involves human participants and could eventually be the subject of a Grand Rounds or another presentation, should the leader pursue Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval or exemption for this survey?